"I'm beginning to," smiled the other. "I guess I can punish my part of
the supper pretty well."

"Good!" said Fred heartily. "That reminds me. Say, Lester!" he called,
as he waded back, "hand us over that string of bluefish. It's lucky we
caught them before the storm came up. Is there anything left from the
lunch?"

"Not a thing," answered Lester. "You wolves went through that lunch like
a prairie fire. But I've got some slices of bacon in the locker, and
here's some salt and pepper. I guess we won't go hungry."

"Not from the looks of that string we won't," laughed Fred, as he
received from Lester enough bluefish to feed a dozen men. "Now hand over
the other things, and by the time you anchor and come ashore, we'll be
ready to fill you up."

"That's a big contract," grinned Lester, "but I'm going to hold you to
it."

He poled the _Ariel_ out a little way and dropped the anchor. Then
he made everything shipshape about the little craft, slipped into the
water, and swam ashore.

He found that his comrades had not been idle. Teddy had ransacked the
hut and found an old frying pan and a bent up broiler, probably left
there by the hunters that made this their rendezvous in the sniping
season. Bill collected all the shrubs and twigs that he could find, and
taking a match from an oilskin pouch started a fire. Fred was busy with
his clasp knife, cleaning the fish, and when Lester reached them, he had
half a dozen speckled beauties ready for the frying pan.

"Let's use the busted broiler instead," suggested Lester. "Bluefish are
twice as good broiled as they are fried. We'll use the frying pan for
the bacon."

"The fish would be better yet, if we had some oak twigs to broil them
on, instead of the broiler," said Bill, whose experience in camping out
made him an expert adviser, "but there doesn't seem to be any wood
around here except pine. And the flavor of that spoils the fish."

So they compromised on the dilapidated broiler, holding the fish over a
fire of embers that they raked out from the main blaze. Bill busied
himself with the bacon, and the appetizing odors that blended together
made the hungry boys wild with anticipation.

At last the meal was ready, and they found it a feast fit for a king.
They had no forks, but they used their knives as substitutes.

"Eating with your knife, Fred!" said Teddy, in mock horror. "What would
mother say if she saw you?"

"I certainly am some sword swallower," grinned F